Prison Break Episode 2: Allen

Michael’s escape plan takes several setbacks as he tries to recover a crucial bolt from the prison yard and keep his fake-diabetes scheme alive so he can continue visiting the infirmary. At the same time, tension inside Fox River rises as a racial conflict builds toward a riot, and Michael’s attempts to navigate the prison’s factions put him in danger.

In the yard, Michael spots the bolt he needs from beneath the bleachers, but the seat area belongs to a hostile inmate who refuses to let him take it. That inmate and his group intimidate Michael and make clear that they expect him to choose sides as the prison’s racial tension worsens. Michael also learns that his source for the drug he needs to maintain the appearance of diabetes may not help him if he is seen dealing with the wrong people, which makes the plan more difficult.

Michael later meets with his brother in the chapel and explains that the infirmary is an important part of the escape plan because it gives him access and cover. He says he needs a drug that will lower his insulin level so prison staff will keep believing he has diabetes. He continues working to obtain that medication and to protect the part of his scheme that depends on medical visits.

Meanwhile, Michael is caught with a weapon belonging to his cellmate during a contraband search, and the cellmate is punished with solitary confinement instead. This adds more pressure on Michael, since the search threatens what little freedom of movement he has inside the prison.

Outside the prison, the lawyer investigating Lincoln’s case receives a security tape that appears to show Lincoln committing the murder he was convicted for. The tape complicates her efforts to help him, even as she continues looking into the case. At the same time, she is contacted by government agents who seem determined to control what happens to the case and to keep Lincoln from being cleared.

Back inside Fox River, the mobster John Abruzzi grows increasingly impatient about information he wants from Michael. He and his men pressure Michael for the location of a man tied to Abruzzi’s imprisonment, making it clear that Michael is caught between multiple dangerous forces in the prison. The episode ends with Michael facing severe retaliation from Abruzzi’s side after refusing to give up the information.